Our Strategic Plan for 2018 – 23 sets out what drives our work and what we aim to achieve.
Who we are
The Citizens Advice network in Scotland is the largest independent advice service in the country. Citizens Advice Scotland is a charity within this network: we act as a national organisation supporting and representing the service as a whole and the interests of citizens.
At the core of the network there are 59 individual Citizens Advice Bureau organisations across Scotland, all operating as independent charities in their own right and generally focusing on providing support directly to citizens. Each of these organisations is a member of Citizens Advice Scotland. Also providing significant added value are the national elements of the service run out of Citizens Advice Scotland, such as the Extra Help Unit.
Our vision and purpose
Citizens Advice Scotland will help build a fairer society by:
- enhancing and adding value for the Citizens Advice network (which provides free access to quality information and advice for all)
- influencing for positive change.
Across 2018-2023 we will focus on four strategic areas:
1. Funding and income. We recognise this is critical to the success and impact of the whole network in Scotland, and that we have a key role to play in securing it in terms of: maximising funding opportunities; creating sustainable funding models; and demonstrating our impact to funders to secure future investment.
2. Enabling service delivery. High quality advice and information should be available for all who need it. We are working to: enhance the service we offer the network; enable the network to prepare for and invest in the future of service delivery; maintain and support high quality advice.
3. Building brand. Our brand is a valuable asset and we believe that by building it we can provide greater support to the network and to citizens. We will do this through: protecting and enhancing the reputation of the network’s brand; positioning the network at the heart of Scotland’s volunteering agenda; and through maintaining high levels of corporate governance.
4. Advocacy and influence. We act as a voice for the network in Scotland, influencing decision makers in the interests of the network as a whole and of citizens. We will: bring about change for the benefit of the network; champion the interests of citizens and consumers; and embed influencing capacity throughout the network to deliver maximum impact.
